As winter sports, and particularly the sports of skiing and snowboarding, have increased in popularity, it is not surprising that many new and innovative improvements have been developed for the clothing and equipment that must be used. In addition to improvements of existing equipment, there have also been many significant developments in new types of equipment. Of particular importance for the present invention is the sit-ski which allows a person to ski in snow while maintaining a sitting position.
For the sitting skier, the suspension and support system which is used to attach and hold the ski on the skier is a structure of major importance. Through such structure, the skier must be able to control the ski at all times. Obviously, control is required as the sit-ski is maneuvered down the slope of a mountain. Importantly, this control must be maintainable over a wide range of speeds across a variety of different terrain features. Furthermore, and not so obviously, the sit-ski needs to be controlled at the equally challenging times when the skier and his/her equipment need to get on and off a chair lift.
One feature of special importance to the design of any sit-ski is the skiers reaction as the ski is being maneuvered down a slope. Heretofore, suspension systems for sit-skis have been generally constructed as parallelograms with one side of the parallelogram being attached to the ski and the opposite side being used as a support platform for the skier. Such a construction essentially maintains the skier's support platform in an orientation that is parallel to the ski. When appropriate, shock absorbers are added to dampen movements of the support platform, however, the consequence has been that vertical movement for the skier becomes significantly limited. On the other hand, it is recognized by the present invention that some additional vertical movement, over what is currently available, facilitates control of a sit ski. Furthermore, it is recognized that some additional vertical movement provides more comfort and freedom of operation for the skier.
In light of the above it is an object of the present invention to provide a sit-ski which has improved comfort and controllability. It is another object of the present invention to provide a sit-ski which establishes a relatively low center of gravity for improved control. Still another object of the present invention is to provide a sit-ski which minimizes chatter. Another object of the present invention is to provide a sit-ski which is simple to use, relatively easy to manufacture, and comparatively cost effective.